Some Day Somebody (8 page)

Carrie jerked her gaze around to peer up at him. “You designed this?”

“Designed and built it on commission. I live a few blocks to the east of this place.”

“I didn’t know you were a carpenter.”

“I like working with wood...
er
...lumber,” he added, cracking a grin.

Carrie’s eyes sparkled with silent laughter. “Don’t ever stop trying to be funny, Sam. One day you’ll get it right.”

“I’m forty years old.” He forced the tone of his voice into an exaggerated twang. “If it
ain’t
happened yet, chances are, it
ain’t
gonna
.”

“You big Redneck.”

“Watch who you call a Redneck, Coon-Ass.”

Carrie twisted her features in distaste. “Call me Cajun all day long, but never Coon-ass. Do you know the origin of that word?”

He nodded. “It’s from the French word,
conasse
, a derogatory word the French used to describe people of a lower culture.”

Carrie’s mouth opened in surprise. “I’m doubly impressed, Mr. Langley. With this,” she said, indicating the gazebo, “and the fact that you’re the first person since my dad to have answered correctly.”

“Do I get an
‘A’
?”

She tapped her chin with her forefinger. “Let’s see. I may have to grade on a curve.”

“How about a date?”

“Maybe a B plus...” she began, before she stopped suddenly. “What did you say?”

“I asked you for a date. You know, for answering correctly.” He stood and walked over to take a seat beside her.
“How about it, Carrie?
Is it worth dinner and a movie?”

Carrie gazed at the sincerity in his face. “Oh...I...Ah,” she stammered, trying to shake off her surprise as her brain shifted into overdrive. All the reasons she shouldn’t flooded her mind, doing battle with her desire to say yes. Everything she’d seen of this man in the last few months told her Sam would be a good risk. Every thump of her heart reverberated in her chest, mimicking the three-pitch drums she used to play in high school.

Sam raised his hand, his features tight. “Forget I said anything. I had no business thinking you’d be interested.”

Carrie reached out to lower his hand, her voice strong and steady as she spoke. “Sam, look at me.” She waited until he lifted his gaze to meet hers. “It’s not that I’m not interested, but, there are things going on in my life right now that—”

“No is good enough, Carrie. You don’t have to make excuses.”

“I’m not making excuses, but your timing sucks.”

Sam propped his elbows on his knees and clasped his hands together. “That’s a given.”

She leaned forward until she could see his face. “My daughter, Lauren, is depressed about the divorce, and I’m worried about her. She’s been visiting the school counselor regularly, but between that and those damn phone calls—”

“What phone calls?”

“I’m sure it’s nothing...”

“Is your ex threatening you?”

“I don’t think
it’s
Dave. I’m not sure who it is. He never says anything. As a matter of fact, I don’t even know if it’s a
he
. I just know that...” Carrie’s voice trailed off as she remembered her early morning non-conversation with the mysterious caller.

“It scares you?”

“It does. And then, after the call,” She paused, not wanting to discuss this morning’s incident.

“What?” Sam asked, stiff-backed and attentive.

“Maybe it was coincidence, but our two dogs went crazy around three o’clock this morning, barking and snarling. I went out to check, thinking they had a raccoon or something cornered. Toto and Lucas were standing at the edge of the yard barking into the back pasture. When I called them, they both acted like they do in full protection mode, pacing back and forth in front of me, growling and staring out into the darkness.” She ran her hands over her arms, trying to shake off the chill at the memory. “I felt like someone was out there, watching me.”

Sam opened his mouth to speak then closed it again. He pulled off his cap and ran a hand through his hair. “Well hell, I don’t know about you, but that sounds potentially dangerous. Maybe you need to get the hell out of there. I know that road you live on. We surveyed that son of a gun several years back. It’s out there in the vicinity of nowhere and B.F. Egypt.”

“I’m surrounded by family—”

“
Whose
family?”

“I can count on any of my in-laws to help me if I need—”

“Then
why
weren’t they with you?”

“Because I didn’t call any—”

“Why the hell not?”
 

“And tell them what?” she said, trying to keep her voice calm.
“Help!
My dogs are barking?” Her eyes narrowed in confusion. “What the hell’s wrong with you, Sam?”

He shoved off impatiently from his seat next to her. “I wish you’d be more careful. You shouldn’t have gone outside. Surely, you heard about that poor blind, woman from Lafayette who was raped and beaten for three days. The scumbag left her to die like she was nothing. As far as you know it could be the same guy!”

“I had the dogs with me—”

“Yeah, yeah...Toto and Lucas.
What are they? Chihuahuas?
Poodles?
Some other useless little dog?”

She blinked twice and once more before she found her voice. “Toto’s a standard white, poodle-terrier mix, but Lucas is a four year old Chesapeake with a head the size of a basketball.” She shifted her stance and cocked her head toward him.
“Anything else?”

“Yeah.”

“What?”

Sam took a deep breath and let it ease out slowly, before placing one hand on the back of his neck. “I hear myself being a dumbass, and I apologize. But
dammit
, I’m in...I’m...I’m worried about you,” he stammered.

Carrie stared up at the man who’d slowly turned into someone she looked forward to seeing every day. She’d grown used to Sam the grouch, the clown, the tease, and finally, the friend. But she wasn’t accustomed to hearing this level of passion in his voice, or seeing the raw emotion revealed in his face.
He cares about me.

“Look,” she told him. “If anything like that happens again, I won’t go outside.”

He rubbed roughly at his face with one hand and nodded. “Fair enough, but you should have called someone.”

“You know if I called any of my in-laws, they’d probably send Dave to check it out.” Carrie laughed as he grunted his disapproval. “Come on, jerk. Let’s go meet the guys.”

Once they were back on the walking track Carrie caught Sam glancing over at her. “What?”

“Can I ask you something? You can tell me to eat shit if you want to.”

She smiled. “Go ahead.”

“You said you and Dave were separated several times. Why’d you take him back all those times? What did
he
have that made you want to keep trying?”

Carrie’s steps slowed as she considered her answer. “I was stuck. No education, no job, no way to support my kids. That’s when I decided I needed a plan. So, I went back to school.” She stared down at a small pine cone before kicking it off the track. “You know, Sam, I dropped out of my first semester of college when I married Dave. I was eighteen and went from my parents’ household to Dave’s. Being out there, alone, and responsible for myself and my kids is a huge step for me. At times, it feels overwhelming.” She scuffed the toe of her shoe uneasily at the asphalt.

“What if you weren’t alone?”

Carrie plucked at a stray thread on the hem of her shirt sleeve. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, what if there was someone around to help, offer support?”

She waited several seconds before speaking again. “What kind of support?”

Sam fidgeted before he continued. “Emotional support, or more, if you wanted it, from someone like me. I mean...From me.”

Sam shifted, unable to meet her gaze. The wind picked up, sending the dry leaves of the park’s water oaks and silver leaf maples to dance around their feet. It whistled through the pine grove surrounding the park grounds as the taller, older trees swayed and creaked in the strong wind.

“Listen, Sam. I’m newly divorced and I’ve got three kids to think about. If you’re just looking for someone to take to bed—”

His hand flew up to stop her mid-sentence. “That’s
not
what this is about. I’m not interested in a fling. I think you’re a brave, beautiful lady, and I'm impressed as hell at what you’ve accomplished.” He shoved his hands deep into his pockets and tapped the heel of his work boot on the asphalt track. “I’ll be honest with you,” he said, his voice steady. “I never thought I’d have the heart to try this again. But there’s something about you that makes me want to risk it.”

“Sam, I’m not sure you know what you’re getting yourself into.”

“I know
you
,” he admitted. “I know your favorite food in the world is boiled crawfish, your favorite dessert is homemade banana pudding. You despise daylight savings time. Your favorite color is burgundy, and you look good in it, but you look even better in forest green. I know you used to cry when you heard the song
Hold On
by Wilson Phillips because you felt like they wrote it for you. Every Christmas you make it a point to watch
A Christmas
Story,
It’s a Wonderful Life
, and the old version of
A Christmas Carol
.” He pulled his hands from his pockets and grabbed the back of his neck, elbows forward, as he released his breath in a long, slow hiss. “I’m screwing this up, I know I am.”

Carrie stepped forward to place a hand on his arm. “No, you’re not, and I’m flattered. And maybe once I’m in my new place I can think about it, but my life is too complicated right now—too many unanswered questions to take a step like that. I need to learn to be alone with me for awhile.”

She lifted her hands and dropped them again. “All I can do is to ask you to be patient.” She stared up him, her pulse quickening, as the drums re-established the rhythm in her ears. She had to dig deep for the courage to continue, but she couldn’t stop now. “So, in the meantime, if you find someone else, well, I’d understand if you didn’t want to wait around until I’m ready,” she finished, her voice trailing off to a whisper.

She watched, nervous as a crawfish next to a pot of boiling water, as Sam pulled himself up to his full height. She sucked in her breath and held it.
He’s going to say he can’t waste his time waiting on me.
She heard him take a deep breath, as though to calm himself. He couldn’t possibly be as nervous as she was.
Could he?

“You know, Carrie,” he said, finally, drawing out the four syllables in a slow, seductive manner. “I haven’t always been a patient man—”

Carrie nearly fainted as he stretched out his long, sinewy arm to place a light touch on the tip of her nose.

“—but something tells me you’d be worth the wait.”

The breath whooshed out of her lungs in a rush. Vibrating with nervous tension, she put her hand up to stop him when he tried to say more.

“Don’t,” she said, shaking her head slowly. “There’s
nothing
you could possibly say to top that.” Carrie backed carefully away from the man, wishing for once, she could afford to let go of her inhibitions. His one-sided grin caused that single dimple to reappear, making her crave to cover it with a slow, lingering kiss. She turned away from the man who stood staring down at her as though she were the best thing since chicken and biscuits.